Indispensable. How To Become The Company That Your Customers Can't Live Without

Separates fact from fiction for what makes an employee indispensable When trying to move ahead or even just keep a job, there are actions that would be of great advantage to any employee and there are strategies that are just plain stupid. Interestingly enough, the stupid strategies are used twice as frequently in corporate America. Indispensable By Monday goes beyond conventional wisdom to reveal and impart the skills and behaviors that any employee at any level of any organization can implement to bring substantial dollars to the company. Author Larry Myler and organizational performance consulting firm VitalSmarts asked 1,800 corporate leaders to identify the bottom-line behaviors that would make employees essential to their organizations. Now, Myler distills what he learned for every employee and employer. Indispensable By Monday outlines the profit-producing behaviors that distinguish workers who add value from those who don't, such as reducing company costs, increasing income, improving key processes, bringing back lost customers and more.

Make your online customers happy—and create new ones—with this winning guide Social media gives you an unparalleled vehicle for connecting and engaging with an unlimited number of customers. Yet this vehicle is different than other, more impersonal forms. With social media, reps become part of their customers' lives. They follow back. They handle complaints immediately. They wish customers «happy birthday.» They grow their brands by involving themselves in communities. The Ultimate Online Customer Service Guide gives you the keys to authentic and engaged service to customers through social media. Using a blend of case studies, a primer on classic online customer service, and instructions on how to execute quality customer service, this book enables you to access the opportunities that social media presents as a means of serving customers. Authentically use social media to connect with customers to boost your bottom line Attract new customers through your online presence Achieve higher GMS (Gross Merchandise Sales) with quality customer service Social media gives you a new and growing realm to distinguish your business. Create a productive presence in this interactive space with The Ultimate Online Customer Service Guide.

Companies like Facebook and Twitter have redefined social interaction. But what if “machines” like automobiles, bicycles, health monitors, appliances, instruments, and anything else you can connect to the Internet, could all become members of your social network, collect data you care about, and feed it back to you at just the right time? Nike+ is already doing this for your body, but every major industry, from healthcare to cars to home construction, is now building sensors and digital connectivity into their next generation of products. Companies like Ford, Pepsi, Verizon, and Procter and Gamble are also using “social machines” to reach new markets, improve brand/market awareness, and increase revenues. Social Machines is the first book for business people, marketers, product developers, and technologists, explaining how this trend will change our world, how your business will benefit, and how to create connected products that customers love. Explains how smart phones and tablets enable Social Machines Describes how digital technology is being “baked in” to the most unlikely new products—even wheelchairs. Articulates how the “Internet of Things” is becoming social—and why that’s the foundation for powerful new business models In the very near future, every great new product will be social. The next stage of interaction between people and our environment is upon us.

Practical strategies for better customer service based on the principles of servant-leadership Individuals in the workforce and the clients they serve are the fundamental building blocks of every company in America. Executives talk about customer service; but their employees are the ones who make it happen (or not). Author Ray Pelletier reveals the vital importance of a happy workforce in creating a happy client. By caring for employees, managers create an environment in which employees can care for customers. This book shows senior leaders, managers, and supervisors how to develop a managerial style that combines teamwork, trust, listening, forethought, and ethics to nurture a happy workforce and improve customer service. Built on the foundations of the servant-leadership model, the book offers effective, easy-to-implement strategies to develop these vital managerial skills. It's All About Service reveals that leaders who care for their people create businesses that care for their clients-and gain an edge over the competition.

Praise For Results That Last «Quint Studer is a superb communicator with a deep belief in the power of relationships. His informal tone, sense of humor, and real-world stories bring his business principles to life. Results That Last has a vital, optimistic quality that will keep readers re-reading long after other leadership books have been relegated to a dark corner of the shelf.» –Nido Qubein, author of How to Get Anything You Want; President, High Point University; Chairman, Great Harvest Bread Company; and founder, National Speakers Association Foundation «Results That Last is long overdue and fills a big gap in effective business management. There are legions of books that show us the way to achieve successful results in business, but very few that teach us how to institutionalize success. In reality, achieving success is the easy part. The real challenge is to achieve results that last. Quint Studer not only proves it is possible to hardwire a culture for lasting results, but lays out a simple, logical, and effective way to do so. Anyone who wants to make success a habit needs to read this book.» –Bob MacDonald, former CEO, Allianz Life of North America and author of Beat the System: 11 Secrets to Building an Entrepreneurial Culture in a Bureaucratic World «I have always been fascinated by how the various parts of an organization work together to achieve strategic objectives. In Results That Last, Quint Studer explores the complex subject of performance improvement in a fresh, readable, and easy-to-grasp way. By standardizing certain business practices and leader behaviors, any company in any field can create an environment that allows it to achieve and sustain long-term results.» –David F. Giannetto, coauthor of The Performance Power Grid: The Proven Method to Create and Sustain Superior Organizational Performance

What you need to know about your customers Now more than ever, every interaction you have with customers is critical. Customers today have unlimited information at their fingertips—and can influence the purchase decisions and behaviors of millions of others. With this comes a shift in the balance of power, and every company must come to terms with the fact that the customer is in control. Interacting with customers in the way they want is an essential business strategy and in many industries, the key to business success. Executives still refer to B2B and B2C business models, as though companies control demand by going to customers with products and services. But as Bill Price and David Jaffe (authors of The Best Service is No Service) show, a new business model is emerging in which the customer directs the relationship. It is becoming a world of «Me2B»—one in which the customer, not the business, dictates the terms of engagement. In order for your business to thrive, you must create positive experiences to fulfill a range of customer needs. Though the mediums for customer engagement continuously evolve, Price and Jaffe show that customer needs remain unchanging. In Your Customer Rules!, they define a critical hierarchy of seven needs that your company can meet and apply as a methodology. Throughout this practical guidebook, Price and Jaffe share examples of companies who succeed by meeting these seven needs, including Amazon, Apple, IKEA, Nordstrom, USAA, Shoes of Prey, Vente-Privee, and Yamato Transport, as well as those that didn't. Your Customer Rules! offers tailored advice for companies at every stage, from nimble startups to legacy firms with established customer service practices—and everyone in between. With a simple, elegant solution for driving lasting value for customers, Your Customer Rules! is a clear guide for strengthening customer relationships and competing on more than price. It is essential reading for executives at all levels—business owners, marketing managers, and anyone who works directly with customers.

Preventing Identity Theft in Your Business is a reliable guide to help protect companies, their customers, and their employees from the growing problem of identity theft. Real-life examples show managers and executives how to identify business, customer, and employee identity theft, how these crimes are committed, how best to prevent them, and overall, develop an honest company culture. It also covers how to manage this threat in business reorganizations such as mergers, acquisitions, globalization, and outsourcing.

Learn the secrets of direct response marketing with the man who created the George Foreman Grill campaign In today's highly competitive, global marketplace, businesses have to do more than just advertise their products. By taking advantage of the accountable advertising model that direct response has to offer, you can improve your bottom line, build brands, and develop lasting relationships with legions of satisfied customers. In Buy Now!, Rick Cesari reveals twenty-five years' worth of insights and methods, enabling you to make the most of direct response marketing in your business toolkit. Whether you're a business owner, executive, inventor, or marketer, Buy Now! gives you the secrets behind the successful campaigns that catapulted products into millions of homes. Find out how to use direct response to create a "self-funding "marketing campaign Learn the techniques to building offers that will get people to respond to your products Use «high touch» direct response marketing to build brand equity and drive sales at retail Find out why large companies like Johnson & Johnson and Valvoline are using these concepts for their consumer brands Cesari has put more companies on the Inc. 500 list of fastest growing companies than anyone else Buy Now! to launch your products and campaigns to new heights-and connect with customers as never before-with Cesari's market-leading insights.

Why customer retention is the new acquisition If there's anything the recession of 2009 taught us, it was the importance of investing in our customers, but when was this any different? So says Joseph Jaffe, bestselling author of Life After the 30-Second Spot and Join the Conversation, and a leading expert and thought leader on new media and social media. In most businesses, it costs roughly five-to-ten times more to acquire a new customer than it does to retain an existing one, and yet companies continue to disproportionately spend their budgets into the «wrong» end of the funnel – the mass media or awareness side. What we haven't paid enough attention to is the «right» end of the funnel-the word-of-mouth component that essentially acts as a multiplier for future business. The economic impact of an active, engaged and loyal customer is tremendous. And the same is true of the opposite scenario, namely the impact of angry customers and negative word-of-mouth or referrals. It is this thinking that Jaffe has channeled to challenge marketers to «flip the funnel» once and for all. With a renewed focus and energy on customer experience, it is possible to grow your sales, while decreasing your budget – in other words, getting more from less. Engaging a few customers to spread the word to many. Using this new «flipped funnel» model, together with a set of new rules of customer service and a revolutionary customer referral and activation process, you'll learn how to transform your existing customers into your best salespeople. In addition, Jaffe will explain how to best introduce and combine both digital and social media tools to boost your loyalty arsenal, deploy «influencer marketing» and implement word-of-mouth strategies that inspire your loyal, opinionated, and most vocal customers to become credible, persuasive, and influential endorsers of your products and services. Explains how to cut your marketing budget AND grow sales! Illustrates practical ways to use existing customers to reach out to new prospects Outlines the authentic role of social media Demonstrates key ideas with rich, real life examples including Comcast, Apple, The Obama Campaign, Dell, Panasonic, American Airlines, Delta Airlines, Johnson & Johnson, Coca-Cola and many, many more Written by one of the most sought-after consultants, keynote speakers, and thought-leaders on new marketing change and innovation; renowned blogger and podcaster at Jaffe Juice (www.jaffejuice.com) and host/presenter of web video show, JaffeJuiceTV (www.jaffejuice.tv) Visit www.flipthefunnelnow.com to join the conversation.

How to live a more productive life by putting a profitable lifestyle ahead of profits With his standout Wall Street line “Greed is good,” Gordon Gekko became pop culture icon for unrestrained greed. But, while greed might be great for one person–especially when that person is fictional–it’s not so great for good people living in the real world. In Goodbye Gordon Gekko: How to Find Your Fortune and Not Lose Your Soul, Anthony Scaramucci describes how a better understanding of people, capital, and culture can be used to enrich one’s life, financially as well as spiritually. With smart and engaging prose, the book: • Discusses how the best manifestations of ambition, entrepreneurship and mentoring can lead to a life that not only fulfills financial obligations, but also leaves a lasting legacy • Describes ways in which Americans and American companies can act to avoid the kind of crisis that crippled the country’s economy • Details how to build a core set of values to discover wealth on one’s own terms Given the turmoil in financial markets over the past few years, many people are reevaluating what it means to be “rich.” Goodbye Gordon Gekko shows how it’s possible to be well-off without all the trappings of wealth.